Agriculture, Estonia, EU – Baltic States, Investments, Legislation, Markets and Companies

Photo: riigikogu.ee

Seeder said that good partnership relations with Germany are important, spokespeople for the Riigikogu reported. "Contacts between Estonia and Germany have become systematic and close, as witnessed by the expansion of varied mutual interaction. It has covered economic, cultural, educational and defense cooperation alike," he said.

Cooperation with German states, which have displayed an increasing interest in Estonia, has an important place in the relations between the two countries, Seeder observed. Last year, for instance, delegations of the states of Lower Saxony, Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate visited this Baltic state.

According to Stramm, it is necessary to join forces with partners in difficult times so as to find solutions for acute problems.

Bilateral economic relations with Germany have developed step by step, but there is yet sufficient room for development in both German investment and increasing exports to Germany. While the volume of trade has grown in the last few years, German investments in Estonia have rather declined. Economic cooperation takes mostly place at the level of states.

Speaking about cooperation in the European Union framework, Seeder said it is important to adhere to the principle of equal treatment in order to ensure sustainable development of Estonian agriculture.

Relations between the Estonian and German parliaments have been active. In October last year a delegation of the Bundestag's digital agenda committee visited Tallinn and in May parliamentarians from the Christian Democratic Union were here. The speaker of the Riigikogu, Eiki Nestor, visited Germany together with a delegation in November 2014. In August of the same year Estonia was visited by Bundestag Speaker Norbert Lammert, in April by the German parliament's group for ties with Estonia, and in September and December by members of the Bundestag's national defense committee. Members of the Estonia-Germany group of the Riigikogu in turn made a visit to Germany in February this year.

Today's meeting was attended by Kalle Palling, chairman of the European Union Affairs Committee and the Estonia-Germany group of the Riigikogu, and members of the 10-strong delegation accompanying Stramm.